Teak for making planes

[Matthew N. Masail]

so I'd like to enter this big woodie build off, but I don't have access to many as woods like all the US lucky woodworkers, but I can get Teak. I've heard it's super stable, but is it durable too? Thanks.

[george wilson]

I don't see why teak would not be a suitable wood. Garrett Wade (I think) sold a teak workbench years ago.

There are a BUNCH of woods WAY better than beech for planes. I think beech was just readily available. I know it was never regarded as a great wood,because only 2nd. or 3rd. rate English furniture was made from it,usually in pieces that employed multiple woods stained dark.

Beech is not an extremely hard wood. It turns with a rather fuzzy surface in the lathe.

Hard maple would make a better plane,I think.

[Sam Takeuchi]

I think if beech is usable for a plane, you can use most other hardwood. Beech isn't a stable wood to begin with, but not too hard to work with. Don't you have access to olivewood around your area of the world? That's a nice looking and hard piece of wood, I would think would make a good plane. As far as durability goes, there is nothing wrong with laminating something more durable on the sole. Depending on how you do it, it can enhance appearance, too.

[Matthew N. Masail]

Funny enough It's not that easy to find olive wood. they are also pretty small trees. I don't want to laminate a hard wood to the sole (because it's not that available), that is why I'm asking about teaks durability?
I could probably get maple, but it would need a sole hence I'm in the same problem.

[Sean Richards]

Matthew what about carob (Ceratonia siliqua) wood?

[Matthew N. Masail]

We definitely have carob tree's here, but I haven't seen or heard about the wood. do you think it would be something worth looking into compared with teak?
I'll also mention I'm not looking at green wood at the moment, I have only 1 bench plane and would like to get wood to build the others without having to wait a year for it.

[Ryan Baker]

Teak is very durable. I think it would make very good planes, though it is not a particularly easy wood to work with -- it's hard on tools. If that's what is available to you, then go ahead. Just make sure it is dry. You don't want to use green wood to build planes.

[Casey Gooding]

I've made teak woodies in the past. They work great. Go for it!!

[Matthew N. Masail]

yey! :) glad to know that issue is behind me, thanks everyone

[Christian Castillo]

Hi,

George, I'm interested in knowing what you consider excellent woods for plane making.

[Larry Williams]

...Beech isn't a stable wood to begin with...

Stable? Not by the forest products industry definition--stability refers only to the ratio of tangential to radial dimensional change from green to oven dry. A wood with huge dimensional change when drying would be considered very stable if that change were the same in both the tangential and radial dimensions. Stability has little to do with the wood's ability to stay in place after it is dry. The dimensional change in beech is comparatively small in the radial direction for a wood of its density and this is used to advantage in plane making by orienting the grain so that the wedge, bed, and abutments are housed in the radial dimension. This keeps the changes of the angle formed by the bed and abutments during seasonal movement to a minimum insuring a snug fitting wedge. If the wedge loses its ability to secure the iron after a small change in ambient humidity nothing else about the plane will matter, it'll just be a nonfunctional chunk of wood.

[george wilson]

I've told this story before: We cut 5000 bd.ft. of beechwood on museum property in February 1 year. This wood was all stacked up in the uninsulated attic of a large garage behind a house in Williamsburg,and left there for several years to dry. It got very hot up there during the Summers.

We had to make a cooper's jointer,and got a 6"x6"piece. It was kept in our heated and cooled shop for quite a few months. We'd plane the beech square,and it would soon twist again. This happened over and over again. We were about to lose all hope,when,at the dimension the jointer HAD to be,the beech stopped twisting like magic. So,we cut the throat and finished it up. It is still in use many years later. JUST barely made it,though.

[george wilson]

As for plane woods: I think northern hard maple is a good wood that most members should be able to get hold of. Cherry is a bit soft. Apple would make a very nice plane,but you aren't going to get it large enough since the trees are kept small. I don't see why oak would not be suitable,though I don't much care for the looks of oak. Plum is a very nice wood,with a pretty lavender color. I had some once,but no place to keep it,so let it go. The trees never get big,either. Probably about as hard as cherry. Walnut would make a good plane.

We had a never used Cuban mahogany jack plane (a reduced size for gentlemen) in a gentleman's tool chest in Williamsburg. I don't recall any of those tools being used. We copied the folding rule from the one in the chest.

If you could get Cuban mahogany,it would be fine. There was someone in Florida sawing up cuban mahogany trees that were blown down in a hurricane. It was years ago,and was $30.00 a bd. ft. The real wood is very hard and very dense,and doesn't float. The Florida wood wasn't as dark as some of the Cuban I have,but it seemed hard and dense enough. Perhaps younger trees?

I'm tired and can't even think straight,so I'll stop babbling.

[Casey Gooding]

I've made them of red and white oak, maple, mesquite, beech, cherry, cocobolo, jarrah, apple and probably others. My personal favorite is mesquite. It looks great, smells great and performs wonderfully. George is right, cherry is a bit soft, but you could add a sole of something harder. Both the oaks worked well and were easy to work with though I'm not a huge fan of the way it looks. My apple was a bit soft, but other pieces should work nicely.

[Steve knight]

oily woods can be problematic. they don't glue as well either. Though teak is not hard to glue. stability is what works best. purpleheart is great about the only wood that never failed on me out of thousands of planes.

[Matthew N. Masail]

Just sent a price quote request for teak. most likely it will have mahogany fill.